Abstract: Objective: To describe and analyze the comprehensive flexible off-peak work mode in nursing when assisting Hubei Province in ICU during the outbreak of the COVID-19, in order to make scientific and rational use of the existing nursing human resources and provide references for future use. Methods: Problems and deficiencies of nursing management in the ICU taken over in the outbreak center were analyzed, on the basis of which the management structure was established. Then nurses from different departments were rounded up and reassigned to specialized positions according to the off-peak work mode. Results: The satisfaction survey showed that the satisfaction towards group scheduling, 6-hour working system, off-peak working, and flexible scheduling and shift preparation was 92.55%, 64.89%, 95.75% and 97.88%, respectively 84.05% of nurses surveyed reported that they were able to adapt to such a working mode. Conclusion: The flexible off-peak working mode is conducive to ensuring the safety of nursing staff, reasonably allocating nursing human resources, and standardizing the nursing work flow in ICU.

Key words: novel coronavirus; ICU; scheduling; nurse safety